Southland Hospital has been closed to all visitors, effective immediately.

The temporary suspension of access is to all inpatient wards and is due to COVID-19 events and capacity, a Health New Zealand (HNZ) statement said.

The southern region is currently experiencing a significant increase in COVID-19 cases.

HNZ said that all necessary steps were being taken to ensure the exposure event was contained, including closely monitoring patients for signs and symptoms of COVID-19, and ensuring staff were well when they came to work. 

Our priority is patient safety a HNZ statement said.

"We apologise for the inconvenience to patients at Southland Hospital and their families. We know this is distressing for them, and we thank everyone for supporting our health care team to keep our community safe". 

Visiting during this time was still available on compassionate grounds, but visitors should contact Southland Hospital on 03 218 1949 for further details.